


I Will Lead Them Well

by AceDelta12



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Byleth loves his students, Crimson Flower Route, Emotional Comfort, Memories, Teacher before worshipper, all the feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:08:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26466181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceDelta12/pseuds/AceDelta12
Summary: This oneshot is basically what I believe Byleth would have said before turning against Rhea and kicking off the Crimson Flower route. Memories will be flooding through his head, and some tears will fall.
Relationships: Black Eagles Students & My Unit | Byleth, Petra Macneary/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	I Will Lead Them Well

"You have disappointed me, Edelgard." Rhea spoke, venom in her voice. "To think that a descendant of House Hresvelg would dare betray the holy church..."

Edelgard looked Byleth in the eye. "So...it is my teacher who stands in my way. I always knew it would come to this."

Before Byleth could respond, Rhea spoke again. "Professor. Kill Edelgard at once. She is a danger to all of Fodlan. Such a rebellious heart cannot be allowed to keep beating."

Byleth silently thought to himself for a minute, both Edelgard and Rhea eyeing him, expecting him to take their side.

Finally, he spoke.

"When I arrived here, you told me to raise my students well." he said, his voice shaky. "I did as you asked of me. I taught them to be brave..."

_Dorothea concentrated, focusing on the Thoron she was about to cast. Her hands shook. She didn't think she could do it. What if her Thoron backfired and hit her?_

_"It's okay, Dorothea." Byleth said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "You can do it. Be brave for me."_

_Dorothea smiled at Byleth, then concentrated, releasing her Thoron and disintegrating the training dummy._

_Byleth laughed with pride. "Beautiful, Dorothea! Absolutely beautiful!"_

_Dorothea hugged Byleth, happy that he could help her be brave._

"...to value their own qualities..."

_"There has to be some way I can match Edelgard!" Ferdinand said to Byleth. "I can't let her stand above me any longer!"_

_"You're focusing too much on her." Byleth calmly responded. "You want to be so much like her that you're forgetting who you are. Think, Ferdinand. What makes you, you?"_

_Ferdinand looked at the floor, almost shamefully._

_"Don't be upset just because I told you not to worry about your opponent. Worry about your own capabilities."_

_Ferdinand looked up at Byleth. "Thank you, Professor. I now know that I must value my own qualities, rather than seek out those of another."_

"...to be kind to one another."

_Byleth watched at a distance as Hubert approached Bernadetta, trying to avoid falling back into his signature stalk._

_"Bernadetta, can I ask you a question?"_

_Bernadetta jumped slightly, but turned around. His voice seemed welcoming for a change._

_"Um, s-sure, Hubert." she said. "Go ahead."_

_"I noticed that you couldn't pass the Monk certifications. Would you...like some help with learning magic?"_

_"I...yes, I'd greatly appreciate it!" Bernadetta squealed, impulsively hugging Hubert. She then realized what she was doing and immediately backed off of him. "I'm sorry! I don't know what came over me!"_

_Hubert chuckled. "It's quite alright. To be honest, I rather liked it."_

_He pushed Bernadetta's loose bangs out of her eyes. "Don't worry. I'll help you with everything you need to know."_

_Byleth smiled, knowing that Hubert had finally learned to be kind to people other than Edelgard._

"And in return, I've seen their joy..."

_Petra carefully focused on the last sentence. "'With the war over, Jethro and Kalima were finally free to marry, and usher their world into a new dawn.' I finally did it, Professor! I finished the whole book, and I did not make any mistakes!"_

_Byleth wrapped one of his arms around Petra. "I'm so proud of you, Petra. You'll be able to speak in our language perfectly in no time."_

_Petra swiftly turned and kissed Byleth's lips hard before pulling away a second later. "It's been because of your teaching, Professor. I can tell you have been playing the game of favorites."_

_Byleth smiled, rubbing his lips slightly. "Well, I guess you did just prove that I have been playing favorites." he joked._

_Petra laughed aloud. "You really have fallen for me, Professor!"_

_Byleth put his forehead against Petra's. "I guess I have."_

_They kissed again._

"...heard their laughter..."

_Caspar swung the axe so hard that the blade got stuck in the training dummy._

_Except that his momentum had continued. The handle of the axe had split in two._

_Caspar was a bit embarassed that he had broken the fourth axe that week, when he heard Byleth laughing._

_"What's so funny?" Caspar asked._

_"You're taking away all the axe's strength in a single hit, Caspar!" Byleth said between laughs. "Look at this!"_

_Caspar looked at the other three broken axes tucked away in the corner, and a smirk arrived on his face._

_That smirk became a smile. He started to giggle, which caved into a full laughing fit seconds later._

_Their laughing continued for a full minute, before they finally calmed down._

_"Ahh, wow. At least the blacksmith is getting paid extra from the damage I'm doing!"_

_Byleth shook his head, taking the handle from Caspar and wedging the axe blade loose from the training dummy as the last of his laughter escaped his lips._

_"I swear, though, it's gonna start coming outta your pocket, Caspar."_

_"Aw, c'mon, Professor!" Caspar said. "Have a bit of mercy on me!"_

_"Don't worry, I won't make you pay for all of it." Byleth said. "C'mon, grab the other broken axes and we'll head down to the blacksmith."_

"...and their cries, as they opened up to me."

_"And...and...I don't want to go home after I graduate! I don't want to be anywhere near my father ever again!" Bernadetta said, bursting into tears as she clutched onto Byleth's tunic._

_Byleth placed a hand on her head. "It's okay, Bernadetta. I'm here."_

_Bernadetta sniffled, wiping the tears off her face. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to waste your time talking about stuff that's already happened..."_

_"It's okay, Bernadetta. In fact, I'll be your father."_

_Bernadetta stopped crying and wiped her face dry with her sleeve. "You...you really will?"_

_Byleth nodded, smiling. "I'll be the father you need in your life."_

_"Professor, thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" Bernadetta cried out as she leapt up and hugged him tight. "I promise I'll never forget today! I swear it!"_

_"Don't worry, there's no way you could forget today."_

_Bernadetta let go of Byleth. "What do you mean?"_

_"Look in your bag."_

_Bernadetta opened her hedgehog bag and found a teddy bear with an armor-like design on it. "Professor, it's so cute! I love it!"_

_Byleth wrapped his arm around her. "Happy birthday, Bernadetta."_

"These troubled kids, the future of this land..."

_Linhardt looked at the thief he killed, his bloody sword in his hand. "Oh no...what have I done? The blood..."_

_Byleth saw Linhardt suddenly fall to his knees and burst into tears._

_He was at his side a moment later._

_"Linhardt? Are you alright?" he asked._

_"Does it look like it?" Linhardt asked between sniffles. "I just took someone's life! I can't live with that guilt! What if they had a family?"_

_"Killing is never easy." Byleth said as he pulled out a cloth and began to wipe the blood on Linhardt's face. "The best we can do is pray that their souls find peace with the goddess above."_

_"Yeah...yeah, you're right, Professor. But...even if I do have to kill them, I don't want to make it look like they're actually dead, y'know?"_

_"Why not study magic?" Byleth asked. "I've read a lot about it, and I can't recall a single time where magic drew blood."_

_"So...what you're saying is that I can learn of a way to battle without smelling the blood I draw?"_

_"Yes, Linhardt. Come speak with me after we've all settled down from this mission, and I'll readjust your goals so you can become a Monk. I would suggest you do Reason and Faith training with Lady Rhea. She's more skilled at magic than anyone I know."_

_"Yes...thank you, Professor."_

_Linhardt hugged Byleth, and the two stood up to continue the fight alongside the rest of the students._

"...I will not step aside..."

_"Edelgard...thank you for revealing this to me." Byleth said after Edelgard told him of the tortures she had endured, all so that some dark mages could get an Adrestian ruler with a Major Crest._

_"I beg you, Professor. Don't tell this to anyone. Not Rhea, not Hanneman, not even Hubert. I don't want anyone to know until the moment is right."_

_She took his hands. "I need you, Professor."_

_"Don't worry, El. I have no intention of leaving your side."_

_"You...used my nickname..." Edelgard said. "Nobody's called me that in a very long time..."_

_"We've grown close lately. I figured I was allowed to start using it."_

_"You definitely are, Professor. Just...only in private, okay?"_

_"I understand, El." Byleth said, smiling._

_Edelgard hugged him, nearly breathless._

Byleth turned to face Rhea. "...not now, when they need me most. I am their teacher, their light in the dark."

He raised the Sword of the Creator and assumed his combat position. "And I will lead them well."


End file.
